History of abraham baldwin agricultural college

Dr. James Burran was named assistant to the academic dean on January 1. Burran joined the ABAC faculty in 1978 as an assistant professor in the Division of Social Science. Registrar Paul Gaines said the enrollment for the 1980 winter quarter is 2,142 students. ABAC President Stanley Anderson said Dr. William Wheeler will take over duties as evening program director in addition to his responsibilities as Director of Special Studies.

After two straight winless seasons and five losses to open this year, the women’s basketball team at ABAC recorded a 79-60 win over Middle Georgia on January 18. Nancy Anderson led Coach Jeff Kincaid’s Fillies with 15 points and 12 rebounds. She received ample support from Lisa Arrington with 14, Sheila Williams with 13, Donna Ranew with 11 and Becky Thomas and Shari Strickland with 10 apiece. The Fillies wound up 5-13 on the year. With an average of 15.9 points per game, Anderson was selected for the all-conference team. Coach Donnie Veal’s Stallions finished with a 9-19 record and a first round loss in the state tournament.

Development Director Melvin Merrill announced the kickoff to the “ABAC in the 80s” fundraising campaign with a goal of $1,000,000. WABR-FM received approval from the FCC to resume full scale programming on January 18. The station has been off the air for over a year. The 10^th annual convention of the Georgia Young Farmers Association met at ABAC on January 25-26. The Baldwin Players under the direction of Sonny Burt performed “The Mousetrap” on February 11-15. Cast members included Lauren Whitfield, Paul Humphrey, Chris Robertson, Darith Russell, Lee Norris, Andy Gibbs, and Kevin Lawton. The roof was completed on the new picnic pavilion at Lake Baldwin on February 12.

Waylon Jennings performed in Gressette Gym on March 25. He was scheduled to perform on February 26 but cancelled the show at the last moment. In an interview, Albany Herald reporter Charles Postell asked Jennings if the rumors were true that he cancelled the show because the stage was too low and the students refused to furnish him with whiskey. Jennings said, “I don’t remember. That sounds pretty good.” Postell asked him which one of the reported reasons was true. “Either one,” Jennings said.

Bud Laird said he came to ABAC from Morrow “to pick bluegrass and get an education.” Laird is a member of the Pony Express Bluegrass Band which features Laird on mandolin, Joe Wright from Jasper on guitar, Mark Graves from Marietta on banjo, and Barry Cantrell from Marietta on bass. Arts Experiment Station folklorist-in-residence Dennis Coelho helped to put the group together. Wesley Baker has been named editor of The Agriculturist. Helen Strickland is the advisor. Nolan Gibbons coordinated the ABAC Nationals Tractor Pull on March 28-30. Registrar Paul Gaines said 1,963 students enrolled for the spring quarter. The Weltner Hall Annex closed after the winter quarter.

Kellie Smith was crowned Miss Homecoming 1980 on April 2 at the 12^th annual TABAC Beauty Revue. ABAC Alumni Association award recipients at Homecoming on April 5 were Emma S. Murrah, Distinguished Alumnus; Robert L. Webster, Sr., Master Farmer; Jane Grogan Gibbs, Master Homemaker; Jack G. Chandler, Master Young Farmer; and George P. Donaldson and Tom M. Cordell, Honorary Alumni.

The Arts Experiment Station sponsored the first ever Arts Circus on April 12. Arts Experiment Station Director Syd Blackmarr said the purpose of the event is to promote the arts among young children. The Arts Circus later became the much acclaimed Tifton Love Affair. Doris Sears received the Carlton Award for Staff Excellence, and Melba Cooper received the Carlton Award for Faculty Excellence at Honors Day on May 7.

Famed pianist Roger Williams was the Dollars for Scholars performer in the annual benefit sponsored by the ABAC Foundation to raise money for student scholarships on May 23.

The Forestry-Wildlife Building opened on September 18 at the start of the 1980 fall quarter. The building was later named for Vernon Yow, a longtime Professor of Forestry and a former Dean of Men at ABAC. The fall quarter enrollment was 2,450.

1981

The statue of the Golden Stallion mascot was stolen from its perch in front of the Student Center on January 17. The statue has been on campus since the early 1960s. This is the fifth time it has been taken since being moved to this Student Center location in 1976. Public Relations Director Mike Chason received an anonymous phone call at his home on January 22 from a quail hunter who said he had seen the statue at the edge of a field near Brighton Road. Chason and Director of Development Melvin Merrill traveled to that location that night and found the statue. Physical Plant personnel returned the statue to the campus on January 23. No suspects or leads in connection with the theft ever developed.

The first ever Discover ABAC: College Exploration Day was held on March 3. Admissions Director Garth Webb said the event attracted over 1,100 prospective students from 100 different high schools.

Denise Brewer from Tifton was crowned Miss Homecoming 1981 at the TABAC Beauty Revue on April 2. Director of Public Relations Mike Chason was the emcee for the first time ever. Former ABAC President George King was honored with a portrait dedication at King Hall on April 4 during Homecoming. Alumni Association award winners were John Strickland (posthumously), Distinguished Alumnus; Andy H. Miller, Master Farmer; Martha Spell Lee, Master Homemaker; and Julian Morgan, Master Young Farmer. Strickland died in a traffic accident near his home in Lanier County on August 25, 1979. He was the husband of ABAC Student Publications Director Helen Strickland and president-elect of the ABAC Alumni Association. Tyron Spearman won the first ever Outstanding Young Alumnus Award.

World renowned drummer Buddy Rich performed at ABAC on April 7. At an awards banquet for the ABAC basketball teams on April 8, Jenni Collins was named Most Valuable Player of the women’s team, and Woodrow Clemons was named Most Valuable Player for the men’s team. The annual Tractor Pull was held on April 10-12. Jesse Chambliss and Nolan Gibbons coordinated the annual event, which attracted 11,000 spectators. The annual Golddusters Show was held April 23-25 in Howard Auditorium. Andrea Pate is the advisor for the dance team.

At the annual Honors Day ceremony on May 6, Betty Henning received the Carlton Award for Staff Excellence, and Dr. Ron Jones received the Carlton Award for Faculty Excellence. Dollars for Scholars was held on May 8 with featured performer Debby Boone. She enthralled the crowd with her big hit, You Light up my Life.

George Walter Bird, III, state president of the Georgia FFA in 1979-80, was selected as president of the ABAC Student Government Association for the 1981-82 year.

A dinner honoring the service of Jesse Chambliss was held in the dining hall on May 22. Chambliss will retire at the end of the spring quarter with 34 years of service. He will be honored with the title of Professor Emeritus of Agricultural Engineering. Osborne Day was held at Possum Poke in Poulan on May 24 to honor Stellanova Osborne, widow of former Michigan Governor Chase Osborne. Possum Poke is owned by the ABAC Foundation.

Admissions Director Garth Webb reported that the females outnumbered the males at ABAC for the first time since 1944 during the 1981 summer term with 425 female students and 424 male students.

ABAC baseball player Ralph Bryant was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the first round of the 1981 amateur draft. The power-hitter from Fort Gaines made his professional debut with the Dodgers on September 8, 1985. He spent the next three years traveling between the major and minor leagues. Bryant then found a home with the Chunichi Dragons and the Kintetsu Buffaloes in Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. He was the 1989 Pacific League Most Valuable Player when he hit 49 home runs and tied Sadaharu Oh’s career record by blasting three homers in a game on five different occasions. He retired in 1995 with 259 home runs for his career. Bryant was named to the ABAC Athletics Hall of Fame in 2015.

ABAC student Cindy Mott from Hahira was named Miss Rodeo Georgia 1981. Dr. Vernon Yow has been selected for induction into the Georgia Foresters Hall of Fame.

For perhaps the first time in history, four members of the same family were enrolled at ABAC during the 1981 fall quarter. The Vano family from Walden, N.Y., sent Lynn, Judy, Barbara, and Rich to the college. ABAC alumnus and former faculty member Baldwin Davis died on September 16. He served the college for 15 years as a faculty member and was named Associate Professor Emeritus of Agriculture upon his retirement on August 5. The fall quarter enrollment was 2,322.

Keith Barr (Class of ’72) was named the new head women’s basketball coach in 1981, replacing Jeff Kincaid (Class of ’74), who resigned after three years to attend dental school. ABAC alumnus William Thomas Greer, Jr., (Class of ’62) was named the 17^th president of Andrew College on October 22.

In the November 17 edition of The Stallion, President Anderson said the fiber glass statue of the Golden Stallion mascot “would remain in storage indefinitely until the students can devise a plan to make sure the Stallion will not be damaged.” The Stallion statue was taken from its perch in front of the Student Center several times in 1981 with the last two thefts coming only 10 days apart. Stallion Editor Russell Camp suggested that the college get a bronze statue of the Stallion. Thirty-two years later, the college did just that.

President Anderson selected Dr. Lew Akin as the chair for the ABAC Golden Anniversary Celebration committee in November. Anderson said the celebration would last from September, 1983 until June, 1984 when ABAC would celebrate 50 years as ABAC and 75 years as an institution. Other steering committee members were Lamar Branch, James Burran, Mike Chason, Ronald Faircloth, Marolyn Howell, Rosemary Johnson, Ron Jones, Tyron Spearman, and Joann Thornhill.

Cindy Mott from Hahira, the reigning Miss Rodeo Georgia, competed in the Miss Rodeo America competition in Oklahoma in December.

Development Director Melvin Merrill said the ABAC Foundation had its best year ever in 1981 with total income for the year exceeding $390,800. The largest single gift ever received by the Foundation was $153,180 from the Rankin family to endow the Weetie and Homer Rankin Scholarships.

1982

Internationally known theatrical performers Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee performed before a sellout crowd in Howard Auditorium on February 8. Davis is originally from Cogdell. He and Dee have been married for 33 years. Kris Kristofferson performed in Gressette Gym at ABAC on February 17 in a three-hour concert sponsored by the Student Union.

The ABAC men’s basketball team began NJCAA Region XVII tournament play on the Gressette Gym hardwood on March 4 as the regular season champion with a sparkling 16-1 league record. The Stallions rolled over South Georgia 75-56 on opening night behind 19 points by Eugene London, 17 points by Marshall Taylor, and 15 points by Al Holsey. In the semifinal round on March 5, Coach Donnie Veal’s team knocked off arch rival Middle Georgia 75-65 when London scored 13 points and Willie Roberts, Ben Pierce and Taylor contributed 12 points each.

On March 6, the Stallions defeated Gainesville 67-66 in a super thriller for the NJCAA Region XVII title, the first state basketball championship for ABAC since 1964. It proved to be the last state basketball title for the Stallions before the program was dropped in 2008. Taylor, a 5-foot-9 sophomore from Enigma, was named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament. He scored 25 points in the championship game. Holsey added 11 points, and Roberts scored 10. Veal was named Coach of the Year in Region XVII, and Taylor, London, Holsey, and Roberts made the all-region team.

The Stallions then lost to Miami-Dade North Community College 56-54 on March 9 in a national playoff game in Lake City, Fla. Miami-Dade was 29-0 and ranked number one in the nation. Miami-Dade star Yvon Joseph then led his team to the national championship game of the NJCAA Tournament where it lost in overtime to Midland College, led by Spud Webb. The Fabulous Golddusters dance team under the direction of advisor Andrea Pate Willis performed at halftime in Lake City. ABAC rode a 17-game winning streak during the season to a final record of 25-5. Veal was selected for the ABAC Athletics Hall of Fame in 2012, and Taylor and Willis were inducted in 2014.

ABAC student Sherry Morris from Blue Ridge became the first student ever selected for the Georgia Phi Theta Kappa Hall of Honor in 1982. Jenni Collins from Cotton was crowned Miss Homecoming at the 14^th annual TABAC Beauty Revue on April 2. She was also the Most Valuable Player for the ABAC women’s basketball team in 1981 and 1982. Collins had a career high of 44 points against Brewton-Parker.

Comptroller J. Talmadge Webb told alumni at Homecoming on April 3 that the value of the physical plant at ABAC was $2 million in 1959 and $18 million in 1981. Alumni Association award winners included William T. Greer, Distinguished Alumnus; Glenn Parkman, Outstanding Young Alumnus; Mary Grimsley, Master Homemaker; Larry McMillan, Master Young Farmer; Marshall Bennett, Master Farmer; and John Henry Davis, Outstanding Alumnus in Business. O.D. Carlton II and Jesse Chambliss were named Honorary Alumni. Ron Snuggs took over duties as the president of the Association.

Evelyn Manry Tharpe (Class of ’36) became the first person to pledge $500 toward the establishment of an alumni relations director’s position at the college. At the annual meeting on April 3, the alumni body voted to approve a plan to find 300 people willing to pledge $100 a year for three years to fund the position.

“We have an outstanding public relations program here,” ABAC President Stanley Anderson said. “But Mr. Chason can’t do the total public relations job and the total alumni relations job at the same time. Something has to give. That’s why we need the alumni director to pull alumni together so we can truly have a strong alumni association.”

Others joining the Magic 300 campaign were Glenn Parkman, Maida Ragan Evans, Elna Bragdon, Carolyn Branch, Shirley and Ben Lowery, J.C. Walters, C.D. Manning, Alumni Association President Tyron Spearman, and Academic Dean Frank Thomas. The third annual Arts Circus sponsored by the Arts Experiment Station was held April 24. Maria from Sesame Street was the star performer. Veterans Affairs Director Joe Turpen is the advisor for a new photography club on campus, the Image Makers.

The SGA campaign to raise $1,000 for a new stallion statue has paid off. The new statue will be placed in front of the student center on a 10-foot pole to prevent vandalism. The ABAC administration placed the original statue of the golden stallion in the physical plant after it was stolen from its perch on numerous occasions. Cathy Gilmore, a freshman from Monticello, was crowned Miss Rodeo Georgia at the ABAC Rodeo Arena on May 2. She will participate in the Miss Rodeo America competition in December.

Marie Dodd, chair of the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia, addressed the distinguished and superior honor students of ABAC at the annual Honors Banquet in the dining hall on May 4. Dr. Hal Henderson received the Carlton Award for Teaching Excellence, and Procurement Officer Ray Walker received the Carlton Award for Staff Excellence at the annual Honors Day ceremony on May 5. ABAC benefactor O.D. Carlton, II, from Albany presented both awards at the ceremony.

A retirement party for Professor Vernon Yow was held in the Donaldson Dining Hall on May 6, recognizing him for 32 years of service. He was “roasted” by Harvey Johnson, Ray Jensen, Bobby Rowan, and Jesse Chambliss. At the conclusion of the dinner, Yow presented a check for $10,000 to the ABAC Foundation.

The ninth annual ABAC Tractor Pull was held May 8-9. Jimmy Grubbs drove “Cracker Jack” to a first place finish in the 7000 Super stock class. Over 2,000 spectators attended in near perfect weather conditions. Patsie Cannon was named the top college business teacher in the state when she received the Teaching Excellence Award from the Beta Delta Chapter of Delta Pi Epsilon. In its third year of existence, the women’s tennis team finished second in the NJCAA Region XVII playoffs and earned ABAC’s first berth ever in the women’s national tournament on May 10-12. Ellen Vickers is the coach of the Fillies.

Louise Mandrell was the featured performer at the 11^th annual Dollars for Scholars event on May 28. Dining Hall Director George Graul said he added quail to the Dollars menu for the first time to complement roast beef, chicken, turkey, Cornish game hens, shrimp, oysters, scallops, stuffed pork chops, and crab meat. New members of The President’s Club of the ABAC Foundation were introduced at the banquet including Dr. and Mrs. Tom Brightwell, Ruth Patterson Britt, Dr. and Mrs. John H. Dorminy, III, Mr. and Mrs. Leonard Eastman, Mr. and Mrs. Homer Rankin, Dr. and Mrs. Joseph Turner, and Dr. and Mrs. Vernon Yow.

ABAC President Stanley Anderson announced plans to institute a mandatory meal ticket plan for students who live on campus. “The dining hall is about to go broke,” Anderson told The Stallion. “We are going to improve the food and extend the hours. We’re going to make the food appealing, nutritious, and of good variety.” A seven-day, three-meal per day plan will cost $345 per quarter. A five-day two-meal per day plan will cost $215. Under the direction of Sonny Burt, the Baldwin Players presented The Tempest on June 3-5.

Registrar Paul Gaines retired from his position after 38 years at ABAC. Faculty member Gerald Fletcher retired from the Science-Math Division after 23 years of service. ABAC awarded 436 degrees and certificates during the 1981-82 academic year, more than any other two-year college in Georgia.

Chuck DeVane from Lowndes High School hit .409 for the ABAC baseball team and was selected for the All-Region XVII team. The men’s tennis team finished seventh in the national tournament.

Sonia Hancock from Sale City was selected as the editor of The Stallion, and Jody Metcalf from Fitzgerald was named as the editor of Pegasus for the coming year. David Gamble was elected president of the SGA, and David Denning was elected as the vice-president.

Registrar Jim Burran said 2,215 students enrolled for the fall quarter. Entertainment from the ABAC students at the Sunbelt Expo on October 12-14 at Spence Field near Moultrie will include The Fabulous Golddusters dance team, the choir, jazz band, rock band, bluegrass band, cloggers, and square dancers according to Chrystle Maxwell, who is the entertainment coordinator for the Sunbelt Expo committee. Patrolling outside the tent will be the ABAC Clown Corps and the golden stallion mascot. Members of the forestry-wildlife club will compete in log-chopping contests. Members of the Agricultural Equipment Technology club will arrive a week before the Expo begins to assist other exhibitors. Home Economics Club members will operate Expo information booths. The Expo began as a series of small equipment shows on the ABAC campus in 1964. It moved to the Spence Field site in 1978.

Grady Nutt, who was scheduled to perform at the 1983 Dollars for Scholars Benefit Banquet and Show, was recently killed in a plane crash in Alabama. Public Relations Director Mike Chason said the ABAC Foundation is now searching for a replacement.

Director of Residence Life Dianne Cowart said that Lewis Hall and Weltner Annex will close on December 9, and that the 49 male students in Weltner Annex and the 45 female students in Lewis will be moved to other dormitories on campus. Cowart said the closings are an effort to “conserve and consolidate.”

ABAC Foundation President Ray Jensen announced on December 15 that the Foundation had exceeded its goal by raising $1,096,428 during the ABAC in the 80s campaign. Bill Bowen was the campaign chairman. During the campaign, the Foundation received its largest single gift to date, an endowed scholarship worth $153,180 from Homer and Lutrelle Rankin. Dorothy Dunn retired at the end of the fall quarter from her position as associate professor of social science after 12 years at ABAC.

Louise Hyers hosted an alumni rally at her home in Athens on January 18. President and Mrs. Stanley Anderson, Media Services Coordinator Mark Alley, and Public Relations Director Mike Chason represented the college. Ron Snuggs (Class of ’70) hosted a rally at the Rock Eagle 4-H Center on February 2, and Norma Spivey (Class of ’71) hosted an alumni rally at her home in Stone Mountain on February 7.

The Arts Experiment Station staged the fourth annual Arts Circus near Gressette Gym on April 23. Debbie Poppell from Tifton was crowned Miss Homecoming 1983 at the annual TABAC Beauty Revue on April 8.

The ABAC Alumni Association coordinated the first ever Stallion Stampede 5K race at the Homecoming celebration on April 9. After the race, a ceremony was held at the New Women’s Dormitory to officially name it in honor of Iva Mozelle Chandler, a former Dean of Women, associate professor of social studies, and dormitory director at ABAC. At the Homecoming awards luncheon, alumni winners were Marguerite Jones Smallwood, Distinguished Alumnus; Jack C. Drew, Sr., Master Farmer; Sharon Davis Parkman, Master Homemaker; Carol Southerland Williams, Outstanding Young Alumnus; and Roger R. Allen, Master Young Farmer. The Golden Anniversary Committee headed by Dr. Lew Akin unveiled its plans for the year ahead at the awards luncheon. President Stanley Anderson and his wife, Dottie, and Dr. Akin and his wife, Judy, cut a Golden Anniversary

Singing sensation Sylvia and comedians Skiles and Henderson were the guest performers at Dollars for Scholars on May 6. Charlie Marshall resigned after 14 years as a faculty member in the wildlife program on June 11. President Stanley Anderson said ABAC will save $20,000 in utility costs by using a four-day work week during the summer. ABAC will operate on a 7:30 a.m. until 6 p.m. basis Monday through Thursday from June 19-September 11. Employees will have 30 minutes for lunch.

Coach Norman “Red” Hill was the proudest man on campus in July when the tennis courts got lights for the first time.

“This has been a dream of mine since I came to ABAC 18 years ago,” Hill said.

A memorial service for Doris Driggers, the wife of former President Clyde Driggers, was held in the Chapel on August 10. She passed away on August 7. During her husband’s tenure as the ABAC President, she organized the Baldwin Woman’s Club.

Despite being mounted on a 10-foot pedestal, the Golden Stallion statue was stolen on August 28. The thieves used a hacksaw to cut the Stallions’ feet and tail from the mount. Assistant Dean of Students Henry “Bo” Miller said the Stallion will probably not be replaced. He said the students had raised $1,000 to purchase and paint the Stallion. Security Chief Gene Paulk said the thief was “probably a student with a grudge against the college administration, a professor, or ABAC.”

Registrar Jim Burran said that 2,182 students enrolled for the fall quarter, a 1.49 per cent decrease from the 2,215 students enrolled for the 1982 fall term.

On September 14, Dr. J. Gordon Brackett, an Atlanta physician, donated his African collection of exotic animal mounts, including heads, hooves, and skins, to the ABAC Foundation for display in Britt Hall. Valued at over $250,000, the collection includes two elephant tusks which weigh 110 pounds each. The collection also includes the head of a black rhino, which the Smithsonian Institute reportedly wanted for display, but Brackett did not want to break up the collection. Dr. George Powell, chair of the Division of Science and Mathematics, said the collection will be utilized in ABAC classes and will be available for tours by school groups. Powell made the original contact with Brackett through a mutual acquaintance.

“Dr. Brackett wanted the collection to be used for educational purposes, and he wanted it to be kept together,” Powell said. “We assured him we could do both at ABAC. There were several museums that wanted a part of the collection but he was kind enough to donate it all to us.”

Powell said the collection is quite valuable because many of the animals are now on the endangered species list. The collection also includes a black bear and a grizzly bear from one of Brackett’s hunting trips to Alaska.

The Golden Anniversary Kickoff party was held in the Donaldson Dining Hall on September 15. Dr. Lew Akin serves as chair of the committee. President Stanley Anderson and his wife, Dottie, and Dr. Akin and his wife, Judy, cut a Golden Anniversary cake to begin the celebration.

“It’s going to be a great year for a lot of people,” Akin, chair of the Humanities Division, said.

A lighting ceremony for the new lights at the ABAC Tennis Center was held on October 6 at 7 p.m.

The crowds were the largest ever for the ABAC exhibit at the Sunbelt Expo on October 11-13 when the ABAC Cloggers, the ABAC Travelin’ Stallion square dancers, and the Fabulous Golddusters dance team took the stage.

Assistant Dean of Student Affairs Henry “Bo” Miller said two elephant tusks were stolen from the new African Animal exhibit in Britt Hall on October 20. ABAC Security Chief Gene Paulk and Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice Frank Simons assisted Miller in the investigation. The tusks were recovered on a farm about five miles from the campus. The Fabulous Golddusters performed at the National Peanut Festival in Dothan on October 21. United States Secretary of Agriculture John Block had his picture made with the dance team.

President Stanley Anderson served as the host for the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia when they met in the ABAC Student Center for their monthly meeting on November 7-8 in honor of ABAC’s Golden Anniversary. Carolyn Leverett Kelly (Class of ’57) hosted an alumni rally in Bainbridge on November 15. The Baldwin Players staged To Kill a Mockingbird in Howard Auditorium as their fall quarter production. Les Simpson, Jr., from Tifton played Atticus Finch.